Are you a raw feeder who worries your dog isn’t getting enough nutrients? … or maybe you’re reluctant to switch your dog to a raw diet for fear he won’t get the vitamins and minerals he needs?
Or perhaps you’re spending a ton of money giving him synthetic vitamins and minerals out of a bottle. I’ll tell you in a minute why that’s not a good idea.
I’ve got a great practical guide for you about vitamins and minerals for raw fed dogs. So you can make sure your dog gets the nutrients he needs from his food. And I’ve divided it into two parts …
Part I …
…is for you if you prefer not to feed veggies to your carnivore … or if you’re just tired of mincing or pureeing veggies. I’ll tell you what to feed your dog so he gets his vitamins and minerals from meats … and I’ll also list some nutritional herbs you can use if you feel your dog needs an extra boost without adding veggies.
Part II …
… is just what you need if you want to give your dog some veggies to get him extra nutrition. I’ll tell you which vegetables contain which vitamins and minerals … as well as some information on phytonutrients that can help prevent disease.
But first, I want to talk about supplements, and why giving your dog synthetic vitamins and minerals isn’t good for his long term health.
Synthetic Supplements
Synthetic vitamins and minerals are in nearly all commercial dog foods … meaning nearly all kibbles and canned foods and even in some pre-made raw foods.
If you feed your dog home prepared raw food, you might be tempted to take a short cut and add bottled vitamins and minerals to his diet. But if those vitamins and minerals are synthetically produced, they’re not very good for your dog.
Synthetic supplements aren’t recognized by the body in the same way that naturally sourced nutrients are. They can also inhibit the ability of natural sources to function properly in the body.
Holistic veterinarian Dr Jodie Gruenstern explains …
“Cells have receptor sites for the attachment of biologic factors, which turn on and off cellular functions. These receptors can become “clogged” with lookalike vitamins or minerals.
“This phenomenon can explain why the initial consumption of a synthetic vitamin or mineral or even hormone replacement therapy works initially, when the receptor sites are empty and desperate for the nutrient. But, when the receptors become clogged with the inadequately functioning faux nutrients, the cell receptors cannot function properly. You or your pet may feel great after beginning a new synthetic supplement, or even a new type of diet, only for the original symptoms to recur after some time passes.”
Studies Prove The Difference
As long ago as 1942, authors in the Journal of the American Medical Association found that treating scurvy with 50cc of lemon juice, containing 25 mg of ascorbic acid, produced quicker results than giving 25 mg of ascorbic acid as a vitamin. They also noted the ascorbic acid didn’t stay in the body as long as the naturally occurring vitamin C … and even today, this is a well-known limitation of synthetic vitamins.
Unlike synthetic vitamins and minerals, whole foods and herbs provide essential nutrients complete with the cofactors they need to make a healthy change in your dog
This early research showed scientists that synthetic vitamins don’t always act like their real food counterparts … even with today’s more sophisticated vitamins and research. This is likely because synthetic vitamins are chemical isolates, which are isolated or fractionated pieces of the whole vitamin. Vitamins are defined as a group or complex of organic compounds and it’s best to think of them this way. Vitamin activity is the sum of many parts.
There’s a lot of research showing similar differences between many different food sourced vitamins and synthetics.
Unlike synthetic vitamins and minerals, whole foods and herbs provide essential nutrients complete with the cofactors they need to make a healthy change in your dog – just as nature intended!
Part II
Vegetable Sources of Vitamins And Minerals For Raw Fed Dogs
There can be many health benefits to giving your dog vegetables and fruits. Plants contain not just vitamins, but phytonutrients as well. While a dog wouldn’t survive without vitamins and minerals, phytonutrients play a role in helping to prevent or treat disease. So let’s go over phytonutrients first.
Phytonutrients
Phyto is Greek for plant, and phytonutrients are only in plants, not other foods. Phytonutrients help protect plants from damage, and when our dog eats these plants, he’ll also get protective benefits. Phytonutrients help protect against inflammation and can help prevent a wide range of diseases like cancer, pulmonary and cardiovascular disease and diabetes.
There are tens of thousands of phytonutrients in plants, all playing various roles, but here are some of the most important ones … and their vegetable or fruit sources.
Carotenoids
There are more than 600 carotenoids that all act as antioxidants in the body. This means they fight against free radical damage in the cells and the body.
Carotenoids are found in yellow, orange and red colored fruits and vegetables like squash, carrots, papaya, canteloupe.
Lycopene
This is another powerful antioxidant that can play a role in preventing and slowing cancer. Lycopene gives many vegetables their red color and it’s found in tomatoes, carrots, red cabbage, water melon.
Lutein
This is another carotenoid and antioxidant that’s known to protect the eyes skin and heart. It’s found in dark leafy greens and in yellow plants, including kale, broccoli, oranges and papaya.
Flavonoids
Flavonoids or bioflavonoids can regulate cell signaling in the body and they have antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and anti-cancer properties. In general, the more colorful the plant food, the higher it is in bioflavonoids. Quercetin and resveratrol are two popular flavonoids found in many fruits and vegetables.
Good sources of flavonoids are tree fruits like plums, apples, pears and peaches, and most vegetables, especially red and green ones.
Fiber
Fruits and vegetables also contain fiber, which serves two purposes. Insoluble fiber bulks up the food and helps it to pass through the colon. And soluble fiber can be a prebiotic, which means it feeds the beneficial bacteria in the gut. If you’re giving probiotics without prebiotics, you may be wasting your money.
Legumes like peas and beans are high in fiber but again, they are also high in starch so are best avoided for your dog. Choose veggies like dandelion greens, collard greens, Brussels sprouts, kale, broccoli and cabbage as good fiber sources.
So let’s take a look at the best plant sources of vitamins and minerals. Again, I haven’t included legumes, because they tend to be high in starches, which your dog doesn’t need.
Vitamin A
Carrots, squash, pumpkin, dandelion greens, kale, spinach, broccoli. Yellow fruits like apricots and peaches.
Vitamin B2
Broccoli, spinach, other green leafy vegetables.
Vitamin B5 (Pantothenic acid)
Green leafy vegetables, broccoli.
Vitamin B9 (Folate)
Green leafy vegetables like broccoli, spinach.
Vitamin C
Cabbage, cauliflower, broccoli, spinach, kale. Fruits like citrus, berries, currants.
Vitamin K
Dark leafy greens like cabbage, kale, spinach, broccoli.